umm.. errr yesss...it has been about ten days since last posting. ummm...no excuse really. The dog ate my homework (i don't have a dog). I have been thinking about blogging plenty though, as loads of things are making me go 'hmmm' at the moment.

There are so many sad, depressing things going on at the moment that it would be quite easy to get all glum and think that the world is going down the toilet. The simple solution is to get angry and take it out on other people. But i think it's up to everyone to really go out of their way and pass positivity around...it's easy to get angry when someone bumps into you in the street. I say if more people made the effort to even just smile at someone at the supermarket check out, or let someone on the bus before you, not only does it make you feel good but it all gets passed on. Like a ripple in a pool.

Anyway, I think it's up to US to be the difference and not always blame it on THEM. It's about time people took responsibility for their own happiness and well being instead of expecting someone else to come along and be the quick fix by waving some perceived magic wand. And for those who can't help themselves we should be taking more assertive action (whatever that may be) to raise awareness so that they are helped and accepted where ever they go.

hmm right so that's my two cents for now...i've also got serious ants in my pants because in a few hours i will be heading up to the land of carrots (Ohakune) and spending some much anticipated time sliding around in the snow. And they have lots. It's been snowing ALL week and i'm taking monday off too as the sun is meant to shine on lots of light fluffy fresh pow pow. woop woop!

Where's the weekend gone?

It's been one of those crazy, mad weekends where you go from being so, so happy to the complete other end where one just doesn't know what to do or where to turn. 

World Wide Knit in Public day, despite my lacklustre attempts to organise it, turned out magnificently. The bucket fountain knitters turned out in the sunshine to sit, talk, and answer questions of the curious. It was fantastic, and i have finally been conned into making use of my Ravelry log on. I was worried that it would be just one more netty thing to consume my time, but isn't as bad as i thought. I'm not sure how far i will get stuck into tracking my projects, but i will be making use of a new found knitting community. (don't like those two very similar sentences right next to each other. ho hum). Yay for new (and not so new) friends!

From there was the fantastic launch do for the new Juniper shop. Having just read Mindy's latest post, i can't help but be inspired yet again by her. What she manages to pull off with a smile on her face, despite everything else going on in her life, is amazing. 

For the first time in quite a while i managed to get out and hang with a group of friends i refer to as 'my hutt boys'. My deep dark secret is that i'm from the dirty old Hutt. Mind you, when i was living there i had no idea it was dirty and old, to me it was just fine. I haven't hung out with these guys properly in about 4 years, and there is a great deal of history with us. I went out with one of them, was best mates with another, and i seemed to be the only girl for a long time who managed to stay connected with the group without being attached romantically to one of them. They're now all doing their thing, and the reason for last night was that two more are heading over the great sea to the UK to join two that are already there. 

It was the kind of night where you think, i am SO lucky to have these friends. I may not see them that often, but i know that no matter what they will always be around, and we will always be able to come back together, the same group of friends, and it will still feel like we are 17 again and having the time of our lives. 

The reason why the weekend went pear shaped i'm not going to mention. It has everything to do with seagulls. no, it has nothing to do with seagulls, i just needed to put a picture up. Pics from knitting in public i hope to get up in the next couple of days, in the meantime i am yet again having battery dramas. 

It's grey outside, my tummy is grumbling, and i've got nought left to do this working day. I haven't pulled on my running shoes yet this week (thanks for the advice louise! my body is longing for a run for sure) but I am starting to feel a bit better.

This has helped - I managed to visit Meet Me at Mikes when I lived in Melbourne, and it was still much more second handy than crafty then. I love how things evolve...and now i want a shop window to fill with red shiny things on newspaper!

For any local knitters...it's world knit in public day tomorrow. I'll be by the bucket fountain in Cuba Mall from 2pm with my needles, or at the Southern Cross if it's raining. Yay for knitting in public!
Oh yeah and then i'll probably head over to Juniper for the grand opening of the new shop...think i may have to wear my new shoes for the occasion. :)

advice, please

Work has become a series of brick walls that I keep smacking my head on, so by the time i get home all i want to do is collapse in a heap and shut the rest of the world out...only to do it all again the next day. I am the kind of person who wants to do the best possible job no matter what, but it's proven yet again that my personal life is what suffers. oh and my head. My body is now yelling STOP and i don't know what to do bar taking two weeks off, which is currently not an option. 

Anyone have any no fail ways to deal with such things? bar knitting (which is also currently stressing me out cos i don't really know what i'm doing at this stage of thermal) and spending loads of money that i don't have.

In the meantime I have hot shoes and just made the very last payment on my half of our car. woohoo!

Accumulation

Fun dolls! Book from Sydney...

And the first project I'm going to make from fun dolls...gotta love the Japanese instructions

fabrics from Tessuti...

The new Curvy, Yen - one of my fave mags discovered when i lived in Melbourne, and Russh 

Don Binney book from the boy...

Mist in Katoomba

Roses...me is so lucky!

Pair of shoes number one...and new wool tights...

Pair of shoes number two...only $30 from Hannahs, and they're leather. Though they make me absurdly tall...

Thermal progress...

I thought it was about time to reemerge from the abyss where I have been hiding of late and share a few things. My sincere apologies for such heinous photos - i leave at dark and come home at dark. boohoo. It is all made better by decent food (my first real dinner in a week thanks to healthy food guide), wearing my snowboard boots around the house and being in possession of two new pairs of shoes. I actually have $3 in my bank account until Wednesday and I swear I am now going to hide my credit card in the worm farm to prevent further temptation. but hey, i didn't buy any clothes in Sydney and the last time i bought decent shoes was, um...2006. So i figure these two will do me for another two years. 

Last week was three years with the boy, and I was completely spoilt. Roses and a Don Binney book i have wanted for 5 years. How did he know i wanted it? he didn't. brownie points for him!!

The other pics...thermal is progressing, slowly. i am struggling my way through the first sleeve after frogging it. Damn being a perfectionist. I have spent way too much time on it to come to the end of the sleeves and it not fit together because of ending up with too many stitches. 

Happy World Environment Day!

Apologies for being completely and totally blog-slack. Have been in Sydney and now work has wreaked havoc on my life...oh joy. Hope to get back to normal bloggyness on the weekend, with pictures of my stash aquired over the ditch. Typical me - tried to spend money on clothes, failed, so came back with books, magazines, fabric and a scarf instead.